Civil War

Historians and experts look at the role of slavery in the Civil War and its effect on the U.S. from Reconstruction through the present day.

As a fugitive on the run, John Wilkes Booth recorded his version of the Lincoln assassination in a diary, but some of his secrets are lost to history.

Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is regarded as one of the most powerful and poignant speeches in American history.

For three days in July 1863, Union and Confederate forces clash at Gettysburg in one of the most pivotal battles of the Civil War.

The assassination of President Lincoln was just one part of a larger plot to decapitate the federal government of the U.S. after the Civil War.

Learn how blacks serving in WWII helped forward the Civil Rights Movement.

After the carnage at the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln reaffirms his commitment to achieving freedom for all.

Most Confederate monuments were built long after the Civil War ended. What were they built to honor? How many still exist?

Find out how the actions of a former Maine professor helped the Union win at Gettysburg, the deadliest battle of the Civil War.

A closer look at why John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.

If you had just one word to describe the Civil War, what would it be?

Grant surrounds and sieges Vicksburg, leading to a crucial victory for the Union.

Before beer and barbecues, the first tailgate happened in 1861—on a Virginia battlefield during the First Battle of Bull Run.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shows off some photographs and illustrations from the civil war.

Mary Edwards Walker was the first woman to receive the Medal of Honor, but her fight for recognition extended well beyond the war.

Historian Matthew Pinsker explains the Homestead Act in the context of the Civil War, when it was passed.

In march of 1865, Confederate forces made a valiant last stand against General Sherman's advancing troops, but were undone by the most unlikely of errors

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar explores the contributions of courageous African Americans during the Civil War.

The unexperienced Union Army faces 30,000 Confederate troops in the first land battle of the Civil War. A Decisive Confederate victory signals that a long conflict lay ahead.

Biographer Liz Pryor reveals Robert E. Lee's greatest regret about his military career.

Although poorly planned and executed, John Brown's raid helped lead the nation into Civil War and made him one of the most controversial men of his day.

One hundred and fifty years after it began, the Civil War is still an important component of our national character.

President Abraham Lincoln delivers one of the most moving and infamous speeches in U.S. History in this scene from "Bloodbath."

Despite gaining their freedom, African-Americans face struggles in the years after the Civil War.

Learn more about the Missouri Compromise of 1820, a temporary solution to the brewing controversy over slavery in the United States.

Find out what event turned the tide of the Civil War.

Voting by mail is nothing new, and its origins lie in part in Abraham Lincoln's vision during the Civil War.

Original or facsimile? The original Gettysburg Address bears creases in it it from when Abraham Lincoln placed it in his pocket.

Union forces assault Fort McCallister, the key to Savannah and the final obstacle along General Sherman's march to the sea.

Two unlikely leaders, Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman become the most essential Union commanders in the Civil War.

Historian Matthew Pinsker presents a quick rundown of the battles at South Carolina's Fort Sumter and the start of the U.S. Civil War.

The Medal of Honor is given to America's bravest heroes, and the first people to receive it certainly proved their courage.

Find out what divided the men of the Civil War, and how in many ways they were more alike than different.

Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation in this scene from "The March to War."

During the infamous 285-mile "March to the Sea," General William Tecumseh Sherman burns buildings, twists train tracks, and tramples the Georgian countryside in this scene from "Bloodbath."

The 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was one of the first official Black units in the U.S. armed forces.

At Shiloh, Tennessee in April of 1862, a Confederate surprise attack backfires when the Union holds firm at the "Hornet's Nest."

The Civil War was a long and gruesome conflict that claimed more than 620,000 lives and had lasting effects on military and civilian survivors.

Union General William T. Sherman was reviled throughout the South as a monster, but his real legacy contradicted his myth.

The general leads to Confederate forces in the Civil War, and in the process gains mythic status.

In the small Pennsylvania town of Gettysburg, 3,000 Union soldiers prepare to face the onslaught of 60,000 advancing Confederate soldiers.

General Sherman cuts the rail lines around Atlanta and captures the key Southern city, bolstering public opinion in the North as Lincoln prepares for re-election.

Historian Matthew Pinsker presents a quick rundown of women's involvement in the U.S. Civil War.

1863 "Wallpaper Edition" of the Daily Citizen newspaper is created as resources is scarce during the Civil War.

As the Confederacy fell, its rumored fortune in gold and silver disappeared. Explore the Civil War mystery of the missing treasure that may still be waiting to be found.

Discover how this groundbreaking weapon reshaped battlefield tactics and became one of the war's most influential military innovations.